Flutist Martha Councell-Vargas enjoys an adventurous career as a soloist, chamber musician, and multi-media artist, having performed in Europe, China, South Africa, across the Americas, and throughout the United States. She is passionate about her work to de-colonize the flute repertoire and is recognized for her ongoing commitment to discover, commission, perform, teach, and record works by historically under-represented composers. 

A specialist in the music of Latin America and the Caribbean, she has performed as a soloist with the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Ecuador (Quito), as a guest artist for the Festival Internacional de Flautistas in Lima, Peru, in Panamá, Honduras, Colombia, Mexico, and Argentina. She has performed on the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series at the Chicago Cultural Center and at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall.  

Her debut album, Gran Danzón, features the works of North, Central, and South American composers, and garnered acclaim for a performance that “cooks from the very outset” (American Record Guide). Her follow-up release, Fantasía, features unaccompanied flute music of Latin American and US composers. A “musically profound, seductive, vivid…” performance, Councell-Vargas’ playing was highlighted for its “infinite nuances of shape and texture” (Gramophone Magazine). 

Councell-Vargas has broadened her artistic output to include multi-media production. Her live show, The Illustrated Flute Project, illuminated traditional flute repertoire by integrating choreography, video art, and lighting design. Winged Messenger, a multi-media film, features choreographed performance of flute works by Mexican and US composers, an artistic exploration of the concept of flight, borders, and migration. Visible Voice, a live, multi-media production, was supported by the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo and featured at the 2023 National Flute Association Convention. 

Councell-Vargas is honored to be named Western Michigan University’s Presidential Innovation Professor (2022-25), an award recognizing her unwavering devotion to expanding and diversifying the standard flute repertoire. She is fiercely dedicated to her students, committed to promoting the work of historically under-represented composers, and she is a loyal servant, both on and off-stage, to the power of art as a catalyst for positive change. 

Councell-Vargas is a Burkart artist, performing on a Lillian Burkart Custom Elite flute with a platinum head joint. She is currently Professor of Flute at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo.

Dianne Frazer is recognized globally as a premiere collaborative pianist. Known for her wit and style on and off stage, she “exudes an energy and an excitement that is both irresistible and endearing”. She has performed with a “who’s who” of international artists, and has performed in Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, and Merkin Hall. According to Branford Marsalis, “Dianne is one bad-ass pianist!!” 

Dianne is on the faculty at Louisiana State University, is a pianist for the National Flute Association, International Society of Bassists, World Bass Festival in Poland, the MTNA Southern Division, and has performed at the Oberstdorf Music Festival in Germany, ISI Florence in Italy, Bradetich International Double Bass Competition, International Hornists Society, International Trumpet Guild, North American Saxophone Alliance, and the International Clarinet Association conventions. Dianne holds two performance degrees, was a two-time Fischoff finalist, and was an adjudicator for the prestigious Dranoff International Two Piano Competition.